Cityscapes provide a variety of art lessons for third grade students to develop their understanding of art concepts. Students can also experiment using a variety of art mediums and supplies such as modeling clay, watercolors and pastels. Projects range from making a collage using magazine cut-outs to constructing three-dimensional city blocks out of legos or boxes.

Rainy Day in the City
The focus of this art project is symmetry. Each student should be supplied with a piece of 12-by-18 inch white paper. Students should fold the paper in half horizontally and then open it up again. Use cityscape posters or pictures of street buildings or stores from magazines as a guideline and then use a pencil to draw a view of a city street on to the top half of the paper. Color with crayons. Ensure that the scene covers the fold line the width of the paper. Using an explanation of symmetry, have the students turn their papers upside down and demonstrate how to replicate each of the buildings in their city scene on the blank top half of the paper. Use water soluble crayons or colored pencils for this half of the cityscape. Brush a wash of water using a large paint brush to cover this half of the paper. The colors will meld together to look like it is raining. The top half will appear clear and precise. More advanced art students may wish to add details such as windows and doors on their buildings.

Build a Futuristic City
Ask students to create a city from the year 2030 or another date in the future for this visual art lesson. The project involves developing one city block using different art supplies. Provide modeling clay, boxes and paint, or Legos and building blocks for erecting futuristic city. Alternatively, they could make a collage of a futuristic city using magazine cutouts.

Cityscapes
Show the students pictures of New York City streets. Provide each student with a large sheet of paper and colored chalk or pastels. Using the pictures as a reference, have the students draw a city street. The drawings should involve buildings and stores of different heights and widths. Add details such as vehicles on the road in front of the buildings, people walking by, store signs, chimneys, garbage cans and street lights.

Make a Poster of Your Own City
Show students images and symbols that reflect the unique history of their own city and state/province. These could include a flower, flag, bird, tree or famous monument. Ask them to make a poster using a variety of materials to represent their city/state. They could use pictures from magazines, or draw and paint symbols on their poster. This lesson combines art with geography and history.